Destroyer or Guardian? Monster or Human?
by InfinitelyAnonymous
Summary: A Ghost finds his Guardian whilst being hunted by a horde of Fallen. What he revives is nowhere near his anticipations or expectations for a Guardian. But there is a Light inside even the deepest of Darkness. Rated MA for adult language and adult themes including but not limited to: Violent murder, gore, substance abuse, sexual activities, and other possible unpleasantness.
1. Rebirth

"In all honesty, I've never been very good at sneaking. This has made my journey much more difficult than it should have been..."

Roars and gunfire followed the Ghost on his path through the ruins of the city; until he completed his mission he would have no defense against the hordes of Fallen and Hive that now inhabited the Earth. But he was close now, the Light from the Traveler shining bright through the darkness of the decrepit mansion he was speeding through. The Fallen were locked tight onto his trail and if he didn't get to his Guardian soon he would fail the Traveler, and possibly the entire galaxy.

The Light led him down through the mansion and into the catacombs beneath, secret tunnels, hidden entrances, all things he didn't have time for while evading enemies. Who had the Traveler selected to be in such a place? When he entered the chamber which resonated with the source of the Traveler's Light it was quite a sight to behold.

The ground was littered with hundreds of bones; no it had to be thousands of them at least. Women, men, children… It seemed as a single mass grave for the entirety of a small village. The Ghost flew higher into the chamber and shined his Light bright enough to illuminate the entirety of it. His first calculations were terrible underestimations; there were at least a hundred thousand skeletons in this tomb. They were crucified to the walls, hanging from the ceiling of the cavern, skewered onto stalagmites from the floor of the cave, organized in vast ritual circles drawn in blood on the empty spaces of the floor. The Ghost was floating there in awe when he heard the Fallen entering the chamber just before this one. He quickly scanned for the Light in which he was searching. The source of the Light came from a skeleton sitting atop a throne at the very center of the horrible tomb; Just who was the Traveler resurrecting and what in the name of the Light had happened in this place? There was no time for debate now, the Fallen were upon him and this Guardian was his only hope for survival.

He flew down to the skeleton and began his work of adding flesh to bone, reanimating life into a body that had centuries been full of only death, even when it was alive. The body was quite large, obviously male in bone structure. As the muscle tissue began forming the Ghost was shocked at the shear amount of it. Strong calves, thick and muscular thighs followed by sculpted abs, massive yet defined muscles. As the face came in it revealed a strong jawline, straight white teeth with frighteningly pointed canines, stunning crystal-like blue eyes and a thick mop of crimson red hair. Life had been brought back, not from the jaws of death, but from deep within its rotten gullet.

The man blinked confusedly as the Ghost was still scanning his vitals and checking for any faults in the revival process. This lasted all of about two seconds before the man grabbed the small ball of machinery and light with one hand and pulled its big singular eye close to his own blue orbs.

"What?"

The Ghost's mechanical lens widened at this reaction, but before he could respond the Fallen began their assault on their chamber. His first words to the century old, newly revived Guardian?

"**FIGHT!"**

The man scanned to the left and right evaluating his newfound enemies then threw the Ghost up into the air beside him as he stood to his feet. He grabbed a femur from a skeleton lying nearby then snapped it in half making it into a rather sharp, pointed shank. Most of the Fallen horde had pointed the brunt of their gunfire to the Ghost and left the newly revived man to the greener of their fireteam. Sprinting past gunfire he rammed the bone-shank into the neck of a Dreg. The rest of the Fallen only turned to the man when they heard the blood curdling screams of their comrade as it was lifted high in the air and it's head slowly twisted from its writhing torso. Blood poured down his face and shoulders as a terrifying grin contorted across his maw. They all quickly turned to fire but it was far too late, the demon was now upon them.

He used his improvised weapon till it shattered into pieces then he simply began bashing their heads in with his fists, ripping their limbs from the sockets, tearing at flesh with his jagged teeth. The Ghost watched on in horror at the slaughter; but also in awe at the voraciousness of his combat, like he thirsted for the blood of his enemies.

"Traveler... What dark Light have you seen in this monster to have me bring it back into this world? Have I chosen incorrectly?"

The red-haired demon was covered in Fallen blood by the time their Captain waltzed into the room. Surely this human bathed in blood, a Vandal head in his hands, was a sight to behold to the Fallen's higher ranking officer. He quickly began firing on the beast, which dodged the projectiles as easily as the others who had tried before. But he ran into complications, his fists could not breach the Captain's Void Shield. His enemy, also surprised by this, bellowed out laughter as he slammed a large alien foot hard into the chest of the man, sending him backwards into a large pile of bones.

The Ghost was yanked from his shock and disgust by fear of his own demise. Should this Guardian, this monster, fall he would surely fall with it. Though the demon was likely to kill him as well, he assumed he might be able to at least reason with it.

"Use the Light Guardian! The Traveler has gifted you with the power of Light!"

The wounded beast looked up to the Ghost confused.

"Guardian? And what the fuck is the Light? You mean that unusual surge of energy that's been building up in my chest? How the fuck do I use that?"

The Captain was walking menacingly to the downed demon, contemplating the ways he would slowly eradicate this human trash. He would put this wretch in its proper place.

"I don't know you're the Guardian! Just try and channel the Light, it should come naturally!"

The man watched the Captain coming closer and he focused hard on channeling the light into his fists. When he felt the Light finally moving down his arms and into the palm of his hands the Captain had him in mid-air by the throat, his breath fading fast…

But there it was! He glanced down at his now open palms, they were flowing with Light and electricity. The Ghost's eye widened once more as he inspected the Light.

"…Titan… He's a Titan…"

The man grabbed the Captain by his face and proceeded to channel the Light until the shield shattered and the creatures' head subsequently exploded with a very audible **pop**. Gasping for air the Guardian hit the ground hard; he was down on his knees clutching at his throat, though his expression was riddled with excitement. A second wave of Fallen entered the chamber, this one with another Captain already in tow.

"Guardian, rise to your feet! More are here!"

The red haired demon was already on his feet and his body utterly radiant with the Light from the Traveler. He leaped into the air high above the horde and slammed his fists down to the ground, directly in the center of their squad. Lightning and the Light flashed brilliantly into the air surrounding him as his foes' bodies dissolved into static electricity, disappearing into nothingness. He looked at the Ghost with a face of sheer ecstasy. The Ghost floated gently down but had no words to speak… The beast looked around at the skeletons and at the corpses of his fresh kills, then down to his body which was naked except for the bits of flesh and splattered blood ordaining his sculpted muscles. He stared for what felt like an eternity, but something was different now, the adrenaline of combat and bloodlust were replaced by the goodness of the Traveler's Light. He fell to his knees and looked up to the Ghost with tears filling his eyes.

"What is wrong with me? People should not take pleasure in such murderous things… Why am I in a cave full of bodies and blood? Why was I able to kill them so easily and without a second thought? What kind of monster am I?!"

The Ghost now realized why the Traveler had chosen him… He may have once been a terrible demon of murder and chaos, but this revived man felt the remorse and regret of a true human, a damaged soul. The Light had given a conscience to this beast of battle, a navigational sense of right and wrong to steady his hand and guide his tools of war.

"The Traveler has given you a second chance, to right what wrongs you may have committed in the past. You have been shown the Light and it has judged you to be redeemed. Now stand tall, and speak your name."

The man rose to his feet with tears still streaming down his face.

"My name is… My name is Alexander… I think…"

"Alexander, you are a savior of humanity, one of the last bastions of Light in a quickly darkening galaxy; you are no monster, you are a Guardian."


	2. Julia and Gray

"**FUCKING! KILLER! ROBOTS!"**

These words were often the battle cry of the now seasoned Guardian, Alexander. The Vex were only his second most hated enemies, behind the Fallen but before the Hive. Blood trickled down the ginger's forehead as he took cover behind a large tree. He mumbled underneath his breath as he slid five more shells into the tube of his shotgun. Grabbing the pump and slamming it down he looked up at his Ghost who was scanning for more incoming Vex.

"These fucks are so monotonous and boring to fight! But they're so damned good at it… It irks the shit out of me! Ya know what I mean Jeeves?"

"I told you to stop calling me that, Guardian."

"And I told you to stop calling me Guardian; my name is Alexander or Alex even. And I've opted to call you Jeeves; I think I had a butler by that name in my past life."

"I'm not your butler, Guardian, I am your guide, your Ghost, your-"

Mid-rant a laser struck the peeved Ghost and sent him flying into a nearby tree.

"**HOLY SHIT!"**

Alex jumped to his feet and lobbed a grenade into the advancing line of Vex Goblins. They were deadly efficient and accurate but so damned predictable in the way they conducted battles. At least until you damage them, in which case they go haywire and charge in like a bull high on Cocaine. The Titan ran over to his damaged Ghost and proceeded to poke at its metallic casing.

"Jeeves! Come on bro, you're tougher than this... Don't let these Windows 98 fuckers take you down so easily."

He kept poking then finally slammed his fist into the side of the Ghost's shell. Jeeves immediately went haywire as his systems jumped back online. Alex stared at him for a long moment as the Ghost focused in and out on his Guardian.

"Jeeves? You alright man?"

"I-I think so…"

"Think so? You're a fucking robot are your systems good or not?"

"Yes."

"Alright then, let's kick some Vex ass!"

Alex was legitimately concerned for the tiny orb of Light and metal. Since being reborn Jeeves had been his sole companion, basically his one source of socialization, and truly his only friend. Blending back into society had taken a large toll on the Guardian. Between feeling lost in this new world and being completely socially awkward, Alex wasn't a well-mixed cocktail of conversation. Not to mention that some people triggered violent memories of his past. Once he broke into a fever-inducing sweat while talking to a gunsmith; the man resembled a poor soul he had once crucified to a wall. Since that moment Alex and Jeeves had hardly ventured to the Tower except when it was absolutely necessary.

After the battle was done and they had trekked back to the ship Alexander spoke up to Jeeves.

"So, you alright Jeeves?"

"I'm fine Alexander, nothing a little self-maintenance won't take care of."

"W-wait… did you just call me by my name?"

"Indeed. My close brush with death has awakened me to my own mortality. Not only mine but yours as well. If I die then who will revive you when your suicide runs ultimately fail and you are killed?"

Alex smiled and chuckled slightly as he slid into the cockpit of the ship. It was the little things he counted now. Those few instances when he could forget things long enough to truly enjoy this new life that had been granted to him. Alas, his happiness was but a fleeting fantasy that was subsequently forayed to the back of his mind.

"Alexander, coms from a group of Guardians; they're under heavy fire and requesting backup. The kind only a Titan can give."

"So they need a tank, huh?"

"Roger that."

"I'm switching on my tunes, adjust your coms accordingly."

"Again? By the Light that music is going to be the death of you."

"On the contrary, it is the life of me. It is that which breathes wind underneath my sails. It is the star that shines the Light from inside me. It is what frees my soul and unleashes my wrath and my fury."

"That's very poetic of you, Alexander."

"I fucking know right?"

"And the moment is gone…"

Alex kicked open the hatch to his ship and crawled on top of it. As he leaped from the ship his Sparrow was summoned beneath him and as if riding a wave he gracefully mounted it then sped through the winding paths of Venus.

A flurry of blinding death exploded as a grenade slammed into the boulder that Julia and Gray were hidden behind. The Fallen had completely outmanned and surrounded the two Guardians.

"There are at least three platoons down there Gray… What are we going to do?"

"I don't know. My Nova Bomb isn't even charged and at best I could only take out one of the three Reaver Captains down there… Unless they would graciously move together for me to disintegrate them."

"Wishful thinking I'm afraid… My Arc Blade is fully charged but it won't last long enough to take out both other Captains and their platoons. Plus those Vandal snipers wouldn't let me get near them without first knocking down my shields. I could pop them with my sniper rifle but every time I try one of them lays down cover."

"I had forgotten about them, oddly enough."

"Also is it just me or is Slipknot coming through in the background of our coms?"

"Julia… What the fuck is a Slipknot?"

Jeeves sped over behind the boulder whilst dodging gunfire to join the Warlock and Hunter.

"Get ready, Titan coming in hot."

Alex hit the crest of the hill overlooking their small battlefield at top speed in his Sparrow. As he leaped off his steed the Light began to emanate through his body as his Fist of Havoc charged.

Gray peeked over the top of the boulder just in time to see Alexander lifting his fists high over his head, thirty feet in the air above the middle platoon.

"Is he fucking serious?! Julia go left, I'm taking right!"

"Copy!"

As Alex reached the apex of his leap he looked down onto the unsuspecting platoon of Fallen. His sights were set on their Reaver Captain.

"**GOODBYE!"**

The Captain looked up just in time to see Alex dropping his fists hard into the alien's chest. As the Captain's body was crushed into the clay beneath him electricity pulsed out from the epicenter. The entire platoon had been disintegrated in one fell swoop. As the other two platoons turned inboard to set their sights upon the Titan the other two Guardians went to work. Gray lifted over the top of the boulder and floated over the platoon on the right side. His Nova Bomb struck their Captain and lead Vandals. The Dregs soon fell apart, light work for his Auto Rifle. Julia, now holding two blades in each hand, charged into the platoon on the left. They hardly had time to think before her blades were dug deep into the throat of their Captain. Speed, the sheer definition of it. The Guardian made quick work of them as her time in Arc Blade dwindled down. Her grace and speed with a blade were a sight to behold; Alex was completely bewitched. Between picking off stragglers with his Hand Cannon, of course.

Once all the Fallen were taken care of Alex turned back towards his ship and called Jeeves over to summon up his Sparrow. Gray walked over to the Titan and held out his hand.

"Thanks for the save back there, we might would've been stuck for some time if you hadn't come when you did. We appreciate it, brother."

Alex turned his head to the Warlock and his face lit up from inside his helmet at the sound of the word brother. He reached out and locked hands with Gray.

"Don't worry about it."

He let go of the firm handshake and leaped onto his Sparrow to head towards the ship. Jeeves came in over the com in his helmet.

"That was a rather short-lived social engagement. They could have been your first fireteam, you know?"

"Could have, but I bet I seemed pretty badass just walking off like that. Lone wolf Jeeves, lone wolf."

"You're a child…"

Back at the Tower things were hectic. Alex docked his ship and went over his list of errands in his head.

"Okay man, you got this. Be quick, be efficient, you'll get through this in one piece."

As he stepped off his ship and removed his helmet the sunlight stung his eyes. He lifted his hand up to block the light. When his vision clarified he could not believe his weary eyes. The Hunter from Venus was standing atop her ship and Alex was nowhere near prepared for what lay hidden beneath her helmet.


	3. Breakdown

**Hey readers! Sorry it took longer to post this than the other two. Real life can get distracting sometimes. Not a lot happened in this chapter in a literal sense but I needed to properly convey the hold that Julia's character had on Alex in the past. Things are going to pick up in the chapters to come, I promise. And this one is a little shorter than the others but I found it appropriate to stop where it was and let it sink in. Thanks for all the support and favs/follows! I hope y'all enjoy it and please review if you have the time!**

**-Sincerely, _InfinitelyAnonymous_**

Julia disembarked her ship with grace and elegance that seemed to come natural. She carried it in her aura and in every move she made. Alex stared in awe as she approached him, almost as if he were dreaming. Then the reality train came crashing into him and he realized she was standing directly in front of him; speaking to him no less.

"Hey you're the Titan we just ran into on Venus, right? Thanks for the help man."

Alex blushed and fumbled with his words a bit; her approach had caught him off guard.

"U-u-uh sure, think nothing of it. Just helping out my fellow Guardians and stuff…"

"Oh sorry, I'm being rude with my helmet still on and what not."

The Hunter placed both hands beneath her helmet and lifted it gently off her head. Locks of blonde hair tumbled out from the sides and when the sunlight hit her bright green eyes they showed like emeralds; emeralds the likes of which no mortal man had ever seen. Jewels crafted by God's own hand. Her lips were soft pink, her skin pale and clear as porcelain. To Alexander she was the reincarnation of Aphrodite or Eve; she replaced his definition of the word beauty with her own portrait. He saw this moment frame by frame as if he were analyzing it in a slow motion replay.

Then it hit him, a chord was struck in the back of his mind, deep in the recesses of his past self. His chest tightened and his heart raced like it would jump from its cavity and onto the pavement. Warm tears streamed down his face uncontrollably, though he was not sobbing. In truth he had no idea what was happening, he had experienced nothing like this since he had been brought back to life and he wasn't very fond of it. It was almost like the adrenaline rush of the first shots fired during combat but not as fun, more pain than ecstasy. Julia tilted her head in confusion. The grown man whom she had just met began to cry. A battle-hardened Titan, crying? In front of anyone, let alone a female Guardian whom he had just rescued?

"Uh are you okay?"

Alexander snapped from his trance but his body was still reacting without his consent and all the willpower he could muster was unable to fight it off.

"This has never happened to me before. I don't fully understand what's going on here…"

The Hunter reached out her hand and chuckled lightly.

"It's alright; my name is Julia, by the way."

Alex's pupils dilated as his heart tightened to the point that it caused him to audibly exclaim in pain. The Titan fell to his knees and clutched at his chest. His hands trembled as visions of this woman flooded into his mind. Places he had never seen before, moments he could not remember. Vague visions of the past but nothing solid enough from him to grasp and put together a memory. Extreme pain, the kind of pain that was emotional but was so powerful that your body felt it. The kind of sorrow you only feel once in a lifetime, the kind that follows you in everything you see and every place you go; always in the back of your mind influencing every thought and action. Sorrow that caused you to subconsciously relive a moment that you cannot come back from. A moment that broke your very soul. Pain that transcended death and rebirth. The woman reached out to help him and his body instinctively jumped back from her, his hands still clutching at his chest. Jeeves was buzzing around the man and the influx of indistinguishable vital signs and brain waves flooded his sensors. No Ghost had ever taken a reading such as this and his circuits could not comprehend it.

Guardians had stopped their errands and began to watch the spectacle as did the shop vendors. Those revived by the Traveler's Light were known for having intense moments where they could recall extreme detail of an event from their past life that had been forever etched into their brain. It was very rare that an event had an effect such as this, very few Guardians couldn't handle things that had happened in their past. As Alexander stumbled backwards from the bewildered woman he began to mumble between his hyperventilating. He shook his head violently side to side.

"I can't I can't I can't I can't I can't I can't I can't I can't I can't I can't I can't I can't I can't I can't I can't I can't…"

Over and over again, a thousand times, he didn't even fully understand what it was that he couldn't do but his body knew that he had to get away. If our reactions are affected by our fight or flight instinct his was telling him to run; run as far away as he could as fast as he humanly could. His mumbles turned to whispers and he jumped when his back ran into Jeeves. The Ghost flew up to his ear and attempted to bring his mind back from whatever dark crevasse it had descended to.

"Alexander we're making a scene, we need to return to the ship."

Alex turned to look the Ghost in its singular lens.

"Jeeves I can't, I can't…"

"Alexander, what can't you do?"

This question rang in Alexander's ears for a moment as his mind searched for an answer. One word came to the front of all the emotions that were assaulting him.

"Protect…"

His body began to slow down as his composure came back and he noticed everyone that was watching him like he was insane. He sprinted back to his ship and quickly fled from the Tower. He had no idea what had come over him but it would definitely be a while before he could show his face around the Tower and he hoped he would never run into that woman again.

His ship was landed on a cliff overlooking the ocean; a bright ball of fire was setting on the horizon. He sat on the hull of the ship and watched the scene intently. His headphones poured music into the Guardian's broken mind. He looked downward and sang softly into his knees which were compressed against his chest and wrapped up by his arms.

"Hide my head I want to drown my sorrow, no tomorrow, no tomorrow. And I find it kinda funny, I find it kinda sad. The dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had. I find it hard to tell you, I find it hard to take; when people run in circles it's a very, very… Mad world… Mad world…"

Jeeves watched the man silently from afar and analyzed his behavior closely. He did not know if his friend would ever recover from the breakdown he had just experienced. Sparse time was allotted for emotions while you were fighting a war, Alexander was no exception. He had been chosen for a reason, his purpose was not yet fulfilled.


	4. Nightmares, Snipers, and Sound Life

It was dark. So very dark. Alex looked around for some semblance of light, anything to illuminate a path for him to follow. He turned backwards to where he had come from. And there it was, an ever diminishing light fading into the black around it.

Fear.

The boy sprinted fast towards his salvation.

Panting.

Sweating.

Pain...

He ran as fast as he could, his lungs were burning and his calves began to tighten. Don't stop, keep pushing, you can't stop now. Death is coming, hurry! The light got brighter as the boy approached and time seemed to slow as the plod of his own steps rang in his ears. There was a small keyhole with light creeping through. Alex gently knelt down and winced slightly as the light stung his eye; he fought the pain and pressed his eye ever closer to his only hope.

There she sat. Her wavy blonde hair draped down to the small of her back. She wore an elegant white dress which showed just the smallest amount of skin from her ankles. Alex smiled. The window through which she gazed showed birds flying and chirping, children playing in the courtyard below, church bells ringing. A very slight hum was flowing into his ears, he knew the song; it was their song. She remembered it still. A warm and happy tear streamed down Alex's cheek; he knew she wouldn't forget. He just knew it. The girl rose from her seat and turned to walk towards the door. He could just barely see her lips; the rest of her face was blocked by the top of the keyhole, though there was clearly a smile on her face. The boy was elated by her happiness as she continued towards the door, humming their little tune. She stopped at the door. He could hear it clearly now.

"Alex… Alex… Alexander! Alexander, where are you?"

Alex's voice trembled as his mouth opened into a whisper.

"I'm here... Behind the door..."

Julia began to kneel to the keyhole. He saw her features slowly. Soft pink lips, porcelain cheeks with a small amount of natural blush just beneath her eyes, long dark eyelashes... Her eyes were closed when they arrived at the keyhole. But Alex held the image of her emerald green orbs tightly in his heart, he knew what to expect when she gently eased them open.

Her eyelids popped open in an instant and Alex saw straight through to the window which was now splattered with dark crimson blood stains. Her eyes were gone. Where did they go? What was happening? Alex screamed as he fell back into the darkness and hit the ground, hard. His stomach churned and rolled as he watched the keyhole. She began to ease back up and as her face came across the hole a twisted smile crept across her maw. Alex vomited onto himself and began to sob and cough violently.

Click.

The seemingly non-existent door knob twisted and the door began to slowly open. Its long creaking sound was almost that of a violin's strings being scraped by the claws of a demon. Alex inched backwards across the floor, no longer a boy, now the man he had become.

The Monster.

Light poured into the room in which he had been trapped. Bones littered the floor. Men, women, children. With the Light, the sound of their screams also poured into the empty cavern. Alex knew this place. Where his Ghost had found him, buried among his own sin. The more the Light revealed the louder their screams became. Organs, blood, piles of skin. As the door swung completely open the Light revealed all. Wind and the smell of death blasted him in the face and caused him to vomit into his hands which were trying to hold back his disgust, or to hide his face. He looked down at his hands but vomit was not on them, it was thick dried blood instead. He could smell it, he could taste it. He wiped and wiped his bloodied hands onto his pants as he continued to inch backwards. His back hit what felt like a wall but it was somehow different. Soft and squishy...

Alex turned to see the faces of all his victims; they were stretched and nailed to the wall behind him. They all simultaneously opened their eyes and looked down upon him. Judgment.

"Aaaaaaaallllllleeeeeeexxxxxxx..."

They all called out to him in an oddly happy tone. Their voices were like a Legion of Hell's minions, they were many.

"We're all here Alex, we're all here with you."

Alex backed towards the door this time. He couldn't think. His breath was short and quick, he wanted to scream but nothing could come out. His lips were sewn shut. He felt her knees in his shoulders. He dare not turn to face her. Julia placed a hand gently on his head and leaned down next to his ear.

"We're always here Alex. We will always be with you. Light cannot cleanse your sin, the Darkness is waiting. It knows what you have always known."

Her voice became a shrilled, hissing whisper.

"You will not be forgiven, we will not forget."

The Legion, now in sync with Julia.

"Sinner. Unclean. Monster. Demon. Devil. Evil. Destroyer. Murderer. Rapist. Thief. **WEAKLING**. Poor, pitiful, useless, weak Alexander. Don't worry. Mommy isn't here but we will let you suckle from our tit instead."

Julia alone this time.

"Don't worry, I'll save you. I'LL. SAVE. YOU. ALEX."

All their voices were pouring into his head, their screams became a vice upon his temple and his ears began to bleed. Julia pulled his head backwards and Alex felt his neck tightening, snapping. His mouth began to rip through the thread that was holding it shut. Julia laughed hysterically as his mouth ripped free and he released a blood curdling scream into the air.

His scream yanked him from his sleep and he lunged forward. His head was met with the front hatch of his ship. He looked around quickly and realized that he was where he always was at the end of his nightmares. Not Hell, just the cockpit of his ship. Jeeves' ocular lens zoomed in and out on Alex from the outside of the clear hatch; he was examining his Guardian closely. Alex rolled his tongue around the inside his mouth and grabbed his bottle of water as he eased open the hatch of the ship. He poured water into his parched mouth and gargled then spat. Blood. As he had expected. His recurring nightmares were causing him to clench his teeth till they bled. This had been his morning routine since the duo fled the Tower. Days? Weeks? Months ago? Jeeves knew. Alex didn't want to know.

Jeeves had returned to the Tower to receive and turn in Bounties, gather supplies. Alex stayed in the ship when not out in the wilds fighting. They shared very sparse words with each other. Just food or drink requests. The same old conversation when they docked at the Tower.

"You want to come this time? You could use some relaxation and-"

"No."

"Very well..."

Most of the vendors and Guardians speculated that the Ghost was running on autopilot. It wasn't the first time a Ghost lost itself following the death of its Guardian. Jeeves heard the whispers, knew the rumors. Alex wasn't dead, though he might as well have been. Jeeves felt a light tapping on his outer casing. He turned to see the very subject of Alex's recurring nightmares. Julia stood their gently smiling at the Ghost whose face had turned into a scowl, if Ghost's were even really capable of such emoting. Julia unfolded a piece of paper with coordinates scribbled on it.

"I know he's out there. We'll be here, on Venus. He's welcome to join us, we could use the help."

"But why-"

"Just get him there Ghost."

Julia turned and hurriedly ran off to the docks. Jeeves went back to his chores but made sure to save the coordinates in his memory banks. He became slightly peeved when he thought back to their conversation and his with Alex earlier that day.

"Why does everyone keep cutting me off?!"

Jupiter's atmosphere was its usual shade of toxic green and Alexander was no more excited to be on a mission here than anywhere else in the solar system. Jeeves informed him that a bounty had been given to them to take out a rather prominent Fallen Archon that had just arrived on the planet. This was a critical opportunity and they needed to make haste if they were to take the path of least resistance. Jeeves had no idea what the Hunter was planning for them but Alex was surely going to be upset when they arrived and he saw her.

They landed on a cliff overlooking the coordinates that Jeeves had been given. Alex disembarked the ship with his sniper in tow across his back. After attaching the bipod Alex laid at the edge of the cliff in the prone position. He adjusted his scope which was out of focus for the range he was at. When he gained clarity chills shot down his spine and Jeeves noticed the skip, then subsequent escalation in his heart rate. To his surprise, Alex was not yet tearing him apart. He was simply watching, frozen in position and fixated on Julia. She and the rest of her fireteam were lounged on a grassy patch with a plethora of food and drink. What did they think this was? A fucking resort conveniently placed in the middle of a damned war zone? Alex's crosshairs were fixed on the temple of the blonde who had been the fixation of his sleepless nights.

"First weapon safety rule, treat every weapon as if it were loaded…"

Alex pulled up and back on the bolt of his rifle, the magazine fed a round up and into the catch. Jeeves became worried. Would he really kill her?

"Second weapon safety rule, keep your finger straight and off the trigger until you are ready to fire..."

He calmly sent the bolt home, round in chamber. His finger slid down from above the trigger housing and gently onto the sensitive firing mechanism.

"Third weapon safety rule, never point your weapon at anything you do not intend to shoot…"

His crosshairs eased down over the heart of the girl. She was completely unaware of her imminent demise.

"Fourth weapon safety rule, keep your weapon on safe until you intend to fire…"

His thumb ran up the front of the butt stock and onto the sliding safety; he pushed it upward to fire.

"And the unspoken fifth weapon safety rule, know your target and all that lies beyond it."

The murderer took a deep breath into his lungs then slowly exhaled as his grip on the trigger tightened even more. You could have cut the tension in the air with a butter knife, could've heard a pin drop. As Alex squeezed the trigger the rifle's firing pin slammed into the primer on the back of the round and sent it hurdling towards its mark. Jeeves' system almost crashed. He actually did it; Jeeves had chosen the wrong Guardian after all...

As the chunk of hot lead tore through the air it whizzed directly passed the girl's head and caused her blonde locks to puff into a frizzy mess on that side. The actual target? A cloaked Vandal prepared to signal a Fallen ambush. Before their fireteam could even think to react Alex's rifle had already fired off its entire magazine. Eight shots. Eight dead Fallen; in six seconds flat. But there was a much larger force just on the other side of the embankment in which they were picnicking. Though the fireteam had already known, of most the force anyways, they were caught off guard by the would-be assassins. They pulled hidden rifles out from the picnic scene and threw their helmets on as they locked and loaded. Their weapons were only for stragglers though. Julia pulled a detonator from her armor and slammed her thumb down on its trigger. The valley below their embankment had long ago been wired for the Fallen raiding party. The subsequent explosion shook the cliff in which Alex was perched; he could even feel a bit of the concussion waves from the blast. Impressive, to say the least. Alex stood and slung his rifle over his shoulder, he elected to go down with his hand cannon brandished instead. He turned towards Jeeves who was still in shock and taking in everything that had just happened. As he walked passed the Ghost he placed his hand gently on top of it. Jeeves shuddered, thinking that it was a fist coming his way instead.

"Thanks partner… I really needed a wake-up call. Let's go face my nightmares shall we?"

Alex put on an air of confidence but his hands were shaking. He wasn't sure if he was quite ready to face his dark past.

Jeeves sped up to catch Alex.

"Alexander, what were those rules you were quoting?"

"Not sure. I guess some things are hammered in so much that you just can't erase them, even in death."

Alex hummed a gentle tune as the duo strolled down the hillside. The words of their song cleared from the fog of obscurity in the back of his mind.

"So... On the first evening a pebble, from somewhere out of nowhere drops upon the dreaming world… So... On the second celestial evening, all the children of their pebbles joined hands and composed a waltz… Sound Life…"

**Hey readers! Hope this chapter makes up for the delay in the last one. As promised, more action and more content. Along with a bit of psychology as well and a little of my personal history thrown into the mix. If you know the song or the safety rules without Googling you should definitely tell me in a review! ;)**

**Sincerely, as always- _InfinitelyAnonymous_**


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